


tell the world (i'm coming home)

by iamalystark



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Aunt Natasha Romanov, Avengers - Freeform, Iron Man 1, Iron Man 2, Kid Peter Parker, Maybe - Freeform, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pepper Potts Acting as Peter Parker’s Parental Figure, Peter Parker is Tony Stark's Biological Child, Peter Parker-centric, Peter and glasses makes me soft, Pre-Iron Man 1, Precious Peter Parker, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Has A Heart, all the movies ok?, also tony is Italian fight me, lots of pseudo aunts and uncles ok?, no beta we die like men, probably, up to far from home
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-03
Updated: 2021-01-02
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:13:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 15,949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21652804
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iamalystark/pseuds/iamalystark
Summary: Tony Stark was many things. Genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist, etc. He never expected to add father to the list. But when a CPS worker brought one Peter James Stark to him, all of that changed.
Relationships: Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Everyone, Peter Parker & Natasha Romanov, Peter Parker & Pepper Potts, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 61
Kudos: 644





	1. prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Eyyo the title is from Coming Home by Dirty Money And I’m super excited to write this!

_**MALIBU, 2004** _

**PETER GRIPPED THE** nice lady's hand tightly, sniffling. He'd been staying with his aunt and uncle while his parents went on a trip for something, when the nice lady came to the door and told them that Peter's parents were never coming home.

The three year old hadn't understood at first, until his uncle had crouched down and explained to him that his mommy and daddy went to heaven.

He knew what heaven was. His mommy had told him a few weeks ago when he accidentally stepped on a butterfly. Peter cried into his uncle's shirt, so sad and so scared. He'd lived with his parents.

Where would he go with them gone? But then his aunt and uncle has talked to the nice lady, using big words that his small mind couldn't yet comprehend.

After that, they apologized to him, crying, and said something along the lines of, "We just can't take care of a child."

And then they'd packed his stuff and the nice lady was taking him away. That had been a few days ago, and the nice lady had taken him all the way across the whole country to California.

Now, his hand was still gripping the lady's hand, really, really tight as she walked him up a long driveway. The boy sniffled, his eyes watering as he looked to the ground.

Suddenly, they were stopping and the nice lady was knocking on the door. It swung open to reveal a different lady, with light red hair and a smile. "Hello, may I help you?" The woman asked kindly.

"Miss Potts, I presume?" The nice lady asked.

"I am. And who are you?" The woman, Miss Potts replied, making a funny face. Peter's eyes were wide as he looked up at them.

"My name is Penelope Wright, I'm with Child Protective Services. Is Mr. Stark around?"

Peter sniffled again, pulling his hand away from the lady's so he could wipe his nose.

"U-uh, He is, but he won't want to be disturbed. Is there anything I could help sort out?" Miss Potts said, looking down at Peter.

The boy looked away, nervous, and grabbed Miss Penelope's hand again.

"His parents," Miss Penelope looked down to Peter, "were in a plane crash and I was assigned to place him in a home. Mr. Stark's name is on his birth certificate, and his DNA has already been run through the system countless times. Mr. Stark is this young boy's father." Miss Penelope explained.

Peter's head whipped up to Miss Penelope at that. That didn't make sense. Peter already had a daddy. Miss Penelope herself had told them his mommy and daddy went to heaven.

Miss Potts' eyes widened as she looked down at Peter. "I-Is there any paperwork that needs filled out?" She asked.

"There is, but I can bring that by tomorrow." Miss Penelope told Miss Potts.

"Thank you. I'll take him inside." Miss Potts said with a funny look on her face.

"Of course." Miss Penelope said, smiling.

"Now, Peter, I'm going to leave you with Miss Potts, okay?" She said softly to him.

"Okay, Miss Pe'lope." The three year old murmured, wiping his nose again. Miss Penelope let go of his hand.

"Bye, sweetie." She called as she began to walk off.

"Bye, bye." He waved sadly.

Then he turned back to Miss Potts, who smiled at him. "Hi, Peter, is it?"

He nodded shyly and she reached for him. Hesitantly, He grabbed her hand and let her lead him inside. "My name is Pepper, buddy. I work for your dad." She explained.

She closed the door, leading him inside, where Peter's life would forever be changed.


	2. one

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The start of iron man my dudes!

_**MALIBU** _ _**, 2010** _

**PETER SHIFTED HIS** bag on his shoulders as he waited by the door.

"Is your dad coming to get you, Peter?" A voice asked from beside him.

The young boy concealed an eye roll as he turned around and smiled politely.

"No, Miss George, it'll probably be my Uncle Happy."

"Oh." The teacher responded, sounding slightly disappointed.

It was always the same question, despite all of the staff knowing Tony could never actually come to the school.

It would be kind of obvious he had a secret kid if he suddenly started showing up at a school.

"It looks like that's him, now. See you tomorrow, Peter." Miss George said brightly.

Peter smiled and nodded, pushing his glasses up his nose and stepped outside. He couldn't wait to get home and show his dad the A+ he got on his science quiz.

Sure enough, his uncle's familiar black Audi was parked in front of the school.

The boy darted over and pulled the back door open, climbing in. "Hi, Uncle Happy!" He cried, dropping his bag on the floor and buckling his seatbelt.

"Hey, kid." The man greeted from the front seat.

Peter looked up, puzzled. His Uncle Happy always sounded a bit grumpy, but he seemed extra grumpy today.

"Hi, Peter." A soft voice spoke from beside him.

The young Stark yelped, looking over with wide eyes, only relaxing when he saw who it was.

"Auntie Pepper? Why are you here? N-not that I don't want you to! I just-!"

"It's alright, Peter, I understand." She interrupted with a weird smile.

He froze, glancing between the two adults.

"To the mansion, Happy." Pepper commanded. The man nodded once and began the drive.

Peter blinked. "What's wrong?" He asked slowly, frowning.

Pepper sighed, sharing a glance with Happy. "Maybe we should wait until we get to your house."

Peter shook his head stubbornly, crossing his arms. "No. Tell me what's wrong." He demanded.

The redhead pinched the bridge of her nose. "Alright. Peter, you know how your dad was on a business trip in Afghanistan?" She began.

He nodded, eyes widening as his stomach filled with dread. Whatever was wrong must have had something to do with his dad.

"Well, something happened while they were driving. He got separated from Uncle Rhodey, Honey, and some bad people took him." Pepper explained quietly.

Peter's face paled, and his eyes filled with tears. "W-what?" He squeaked in shock.

"You're going to stay with me at my apartment until he's found, okay? I'm sure it will only be a few days." She explained, putting her hand on his shoulder, a look of pity and sadness on her face.

Peter brought his hand up to wipe his tears away from underneath his glasses. "I-Is he hurt?" He whispered, his voice wobbling.

"We don't know, Honey. I hope not." Pepper responded, looking away and not-so discreetly wiping her eyes.

"We're going to stop at the mansion and pack some of your things, alright?" She murmured.

Peter didn't respond, instead choosing to lie his head against the window, brows furrowed as tears rolled down his cheeks.

His dad had been _kidnapped_. Peter wasn't dumb. In fact, he was smarter than more than 95% of kids his age, so he knew that his dad was most likely hurt or even. . .

He couldn't think the word without crying harder. His face crumpled and he began to sob softly.

"Oh, sweetheart." Pepper breathed, scooting closer to him and pulling him into her chest.

The nine year old wailed into her shirt, his eyes squeezed closed and his fists clenching he suit jacket tightly.

"I w-want my dad." Peter hiccuped.

Pepper blinked away her own tears, rocking him back and forth. "I know. I know. I'm so sorry." Her voice broke on the last word and Happy pretended not to be listening.

The rest of the drive was spent mostly in silence, save for the occasional hiccup or shuddering breath from the young Stark.

Once Happy finally parked in the driveway, Peter was fast asleep, his head in Pepper's lap.

"Peter, sweetie, you've got to get up." She whispered quietly, shaking his shoulder gently.

Peter blinked his eyes open groggily, frowning up at her. "Oh." He mumbled, sounding disappointed.

Sitting up, he unbuckled his seatbelt from it's uncomfortable position, tangled around his limbs.

Grabbing his backpack, he got out of the car and followed his aunt inside.

The boy kept his gaze on the ground as they walked inside, not wanting Pepper to see if he started crying again.

"Hello, Young Sir. Miss Potts." JARVIS greeted.

"Hi JARVIS." Peter mumbled quietly, trudging sadly to his room.

"Do you want me to help, or do you want me to wait out here?" She asked him.

"I can do it myself." He responded, veering toward the stairs.

Pepper nodded sadly and Peter _hated_ the pity she was looking at him with. He wasn't some dumb, little, helpless kid. He didn't _need_ pity.

Walking toward his room, he pushed his door open and stepped inside. He must have forgotten to close the door in his rush to get downstairs that morning.

He blinked, tears stinging his eyes again. Just that morning, his dad had been home. His Aunt Pepper had been telling his dad how late he was.

Peter's eyes suddenly widened as he stood, frozen in the doorway. It was Aunt Pepper's _birthday_. If anybody should be crying, it should have been Aunt Pepper!

His dad was her friend and he went missing on her birthday, and here he was crying like a baby.

"Are you alright, Young Sir?" JARVIS asked softly.

Peter took a shaky breath and wiped his eyes again. "I'm fine, JARVIS." He responded, then walked over to his desk to empty his bag.

Out fell a book and a few papers. The boy froze when he saw his science quiz with a perfect score.

He felt sick to his stomach at the thought that that was the most his worries less than an hour ago.

Opening the top drawer the desk, he slid the paper in and slammed closed. He didn't care too much about it anymore.

Turning around, Peter wandered over to his closet and grabbed as much clothes that would fit in his bag, then stuffed them in and zipped it up.

He left his room, about to go downstairs, when he spotted his dad's door, cracked open slightly.

Glancing down the stairs, he saw his Auntie Pepper waiting patiently in the dining room.

Quickly, he darted into his dad's room and toward the dresser, pulling open the middle drawer, where his dad kept all his T-shirts.

Peter opened his bag again and pulled out all his pajamas, then stuffed a few of his dad's shirts into it instead.

Zipping it back up, he made his way downstairs.

"Got everything, Peter?" Pepper asked.

He nodded, smiling weakly.

"We can go now."

Pepper wrapped her arm around her nephew's shoulders, glancing around the place one more time before they walked out.

"Bye, JARVIS." Peter called softly, though he hoped he wouldn't be away too long.

Little did he know, he'd spend three, long, nerve-wracking months away from home.


	3. two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I couldn't have our Spidey baby be without his dad for too long ...(yet)

_**MALIBU** _ _**, 2010** _

**PETER TURNED OVER** in his bed, brows furrowed as he whimpered in fear. Sweat was gleaming on his face as he panted heavily.

The boy was dreaming, or rather; having a nightmare. He shot up with a gasp, eyes flying open as he clenched his fists around the blanket in his grip.

Peter sniffled quietly, frowning at the dream. It had been about his dad of course, about Uncle Rhodey coming home and telling him his dad was dead.

Peter didn't know what he would do if that ever came true. He threw the blanket off of himself, pulling his knees to his chest as he stared at his feet.

Glancing over at the alarm clock, he noticed that it was about to go off, and reached over tiredly to shut it off.

It was early on a Monday morning and Peter really didn't want to go to school.

Everybody in that dumb private school always said the same thing, every single day, "I'm so sorry."

They apologized like his dad was _dead_ , which he wasn't. He was just missing.

For once in his life, the boy was glad for the multiple NDAs the people at his school had to sign, because just the thought of a bunch of people doing that every day for the rest of his life made him want to curl up in a ball and sleep forever and ever.

Suddenly, the door burst open, causing Peter to squeak in shock, scrambling to stand up.

"Peter!" Pepper gasped, eyes wide.

"What?" He asked, terrified.

"They found him! Uncle Rhodey found him! We're going to go get him now!" She cried.

Peter's mouth fell open, tears blurring his vision for what seemed to be the millionth time.

"What?" He cried again.

"They found Tony! Come on, grab your shoes, let's go!" She exclaimed.

Peter stumbled over to his closet and pulled out a pair of sneakers, pausing. "I'm wearing pajamas." He pointed out.

Pepper stilled, looking down at her pajama clad self. "Good point. Change and let's go." She said, darting out of the room.

Peter changed into a pair of jeans, but didn't take off his dad's shirt. It was like a piece of his dad, it even smelled like him.

He threw a jacket on over it, then shoved the sneakers on his feet without socks and ran from his room.

"Auntie Pepper?" Peter called, looking around, only to stop, eyes wide.

He'd forgotten his glasses. Quickly, he ran back into his room, grabbed them off his dresser, shoved them on his face, and sprinted back out into the hall, where Pepper was waiting, fully dressed.

She must have had super speed, because that was impossible. But, he didn't care much.

"Come on, Sweetheart." His aunt ushered him out the door, where Happy was waiting.

He immediately opened the door for them, and Peter climbed in as fast as he could, Pepper sliding in after him.

Then they were on the way to the airport, Peter bouncing his legs nervously.

"He's okay? He's not hurt? Uncle Rhodey really found him?" He asked, buckling his seatbelt as he looked between the adults anxiously.

"Yes, Peter. He really found him." Happy answered from the driver's seat.

"We're going to take him to the hospital, just for a check-up, okay? I doubt he's really hurt, but we're going to take him anyway, alright?" Pepper said softly.

Peter nodded in relief, sighing. He got a sudden though, eyes widening and filling with sadness. "What. . . What happened to him?"

His aunt shrugged silently. "We don't know, bud."

That didn't soothe his anxiety and he sat quietly, worrying, the entire ride to the airport.

When they finally got there, there were a bunch of people waiting, even an ambulance.

Peter stood beside Pepper, his hand clasped in hers as his eyes searched the sky for the plane that would bring his dad home.

When he finally spotted it, he began bouncing slightly on his heels, grinning so hard his face started to hurt.

Pepper smiled at him, biting her lip as they watched it land. Finally, _finally_ , the back opened, and there was his dad, sitting in a wheelchair and struggling to stand with the help of his Uncle Rhodey.

One look at his dad was all it took for his smile to fall and tears to fill his eyes again. His chin trembled as he waited impatiently for his dad to come to them.

Finally, he couldn't take it anymore, slipping his hand from his aunt's and sprinting toward his dad.

"Dad!" He cried, barreling into the man's chest.

Immediately, his free arm came up around him. "Hey kid." Tony spoke, clearing his throat and as he dropped down to one knee, holding his son close.

A sob erupted from Peter's throat as he wrapped his arms around the man's neck and hugged him as tight as he could.

"Alright." Tony grunted, standing up, arm still firmly around his son.

Peter wrapped his legs around his dad's waist, refusing to let go.

"I missed you, Pete." He whispered.

Peter sniffled into his dad's shirt. "Never leave again." He whined.

"I won't leave you, buddy, promise." Tony murmured, just as they walked up to Pepper and Happy.

"Your eyes are red. A few tears for your long lost boss?" Tony teased.

"Tears of joy. I hate job hunting." Pepper argued.

Peter sniffled. He knew she was lying. She had cried a lot while his dad was gone.

"Vacation's over. Let's go." He said, walking toward the car.

Happy opened the door for them dutifully. "Do something to you hair, Hap?"

"Wouldn't dream of it, Sir." Happy responded.

Once they were in the car, Peter finally pulled his face back so he could buckle his seatbelt.

Bringing his hand up, he wiped his nose, then cuddled back into his dad's side. "You alright, Kiddo?" Tony questioned softly.

"Missed you a lot." Peter replied, staring at his feet.

"I know." Tony muttered, then looked to Happy.

"Where to, Boss?"

"Take us to the hospital, please, Happy." His aunt said softly.

"No." Tony stated.

"No?"

"No." He confirmed.

"Tony, you have to-"

"I have been in captivity for three months. I don't have to do anything. There are two things I want to do. One; get a cheeseburger, and two;" He looked over at Pepper, who rolled her eyes.

"That's enough of that."

"It's not what you think. I want to call a press conference." Tony finished.

Peter looked to him in confusion.

"A press conference? Why, dad?"

"Hogan, drive. Cheeseburger first." He commanded, resulting in the car starting down the road.

"Got something important to tell people, bud. Then I'm all yours for the day." The billionaire told his son softly.

Suddenly a thought struck Peter and his eyes widened. "I got an A+ on my science test." He explained.

Tony blinked in confusion while Pepper frowned.

"You didn't tell me, buddy." His aunt said in bemusement.

"It was, um, a while ago. I wanted to show you." Peter muttered quietly.

Tony grinned. "Show me when we get home, yeah?"

Peter nodded happily, smiling. He dropped his head back onto his dad's chest, then jolted in shock, pulling away with alarmed eyes.

Tony's eyes widened and he shook his head. Peter swallowed, nodding in confusion.

Why was there a weird, hard, circle thing under his dad's shirt? "What do you want, kid?" Happy asked as they pulled into the parking lot of Burger King.

"Chocolate shake." Peter answered confidently.

Happy nodded and got out of the car, striding inside.

"I love you, Dad." Peter said, sighing heavily.

"Love you too, Kiddo."

Peter smiled. His dad was home.


	4. three

**_MALIBU_ ** **_, 2010_ **

**PETER LOOKED TO** his dad in confusion as the man slid into the car alone.

"Where's Auntie Pepper and Uncle Obie?" He asked quietly.

"They're busy. Just you and me for the day. To the mansion, Hap." The billionaire said.

Happy nodded in affirmative, driving off down the road. Peter shifted, pushing his glasses up his nose.

"What was your press conference about?" He asked cautiously. That seemed to be the reason he was unnaturally tense.

"I'm not making weapons anymore, kiddo." Tony answered truthfully.

Peter's mouth dropped open in shock as he looked to his dad. "Really?" He cried.

The man turned his gaze to his son, squinting. "Yeah, really."

Peter threw himself into his dad's arms, only pausing slightly as he grunted, but was reassured when the man's arms came up around him.

"You're really not gonna make them anymore?" He asked hopefully.

Tony looked to him in surprise as Peter sat back.

"This entire time, you didn't like what I was doing? Why didn't you say anything?" He questioned incredulously.

Peter gave his father a blank look. "I'm a nine year old, Dad. Would you have taken me seriously?" He said flatly.

"Yes!" Tony cried indignantly, crossing his arms over his chest in mock offense.

Peter giggled at his theatrics and his Dad grinned, dropping his arms. "For real, kiddo, your opinion is important to me."

Peter nodded. "I know." He paused, then added, "Except for when _I_ want to choose the movie on movie night."

The man groaned. "Pete, I've got all the Star Wars movies engrained in my brain."

Peter snickered, "What brain?"

Tony gasped loudly and the boy continued to laugh. He felt content teasing his dad. Everything seemed to be going back to the way it was before he went missing.

Peter blinked in confusion. "But what will we do if we're not making weapons?"

Tony looked to Happy, who was not-so subtly glancing at them in interest through the mirror.

"Tell you at home." He said finally.

Peter would pout, but he supposed it was better than nothing.

When they finally got home, Peter's heart swelled in excitement. As soon as they were parked, Peter unbuckled his seatbelt and darted toward the door, bouncing on his heels as he waited for his dad to follow him.

Tony climbed out of the car a bit slower, and waved Happy off, the bodyguard nodding once, before he drove off.

"Why're you so excited, kid?" He mused, unlocking the door and walking inside.

Peter trailed after him, closing the door behind them. "Because you're gonna tell me the secret! Also, I haven't been back in three whole months." He answered dramatically.

"You- Where have you been staying?" Tony asked, concerned as they walked into the dark house.

"With Auntie Pepper." Peter informed him, looking around at the familiar surroundings.

Tony nodded, seeming content, and looked around. "You awake, JARVIS?" He called. 

"For you, Sir, always." JARVIS responded dutifully. 

Peter grinned. "Hi JARVIS! I missed you!"

"I missed you as well, Young Sir." The AI responded. 

After a beat, Tony sighed. "I need to build a better heart."

Peter looked to his dad in alarm. "What?"

"I'm not sure I follow, Sir." JARVIS said, sounding as confused as an AI could.

"Give me a scan and you'll see." Tony said. Then he looked to Peter, "Follow me to the lab, kiddo, I'll explain." 

Peter, still frowning in confusion, followed him downstairs to the lab. The lights flicked on, machines humming to life. A grin flickered on Peter's lips. He _loved_ the lab. 

Besides his dad, obviously, the lab had been one of the things he missed most during the previous months. Immediately, Peter climbed up onto his favorite seat, right across from his dad. 

The man sat down and looked at Peter like he was contemplating something. Finally, he sighed, "Pete, when I was in Afghanistan, I got hurt. A bomb blew up in my face."

Peter paled rapidly. Tony rushed to continue, "I'm okay, I'm okay. A friend helped fix me up. But, there's still some shrapnel in there he couldn't remove and it was moving toward my heart."

"Yeah, I still don't. . ." Peter choked out, eyes wide. 

"You know the arc reactor powering the factory?" Tony prodded. 

Peter nodded. Of course he knew. It was his favorite project, he pored over every aspect of it for _fun._ "Well, I made a smaller one. My friend helped me. It powers a built-in electromagnet that keeps the shrapnel from going any further." 

The younger Stark's mouth dropped open. "You made a _small_ one? How? Can I see? Who's your friend? Was he in Afghanistan with you? Where is he now? What's his name? Or is it a girl? I shouldn't have assum-"

"Holy hell, Peter, slow." Tony interrupted, eyes wide. 

Peter smiled sheepishly, looking down. 

"To answer your questions, yes, I made a small one. And before you ask, yes, I'll tell you all about it. I might even let you help with the next one." Peter's eyes lit up at that, "Yes, I'll let you see. My friend's name was Yinsen, he was in Afghanistan with me, but he's with his family now."

Peter narrowed his eyes at his dad. The man seemed sad. "Are you okay, Dad?"

Tony blinked in shock and confusion. "Yeah, I'm fine." He answered eventually.

Peter didn't quite believe him but he let it slide. "Can I meet him?"

 _"No!"_

The boy recoiled in shock at his dad's tone. "No," he said, calmer, "Yinsen. . . Yinsen's in Heaven, bud."

Tears stung Peter's eyes at that revelation, sad for a man he never knew. "Oh." He murmured softly. 

Then he looked back up, a million more questions on his mind. "Who had you? What did they want? How did you escape?" 

Tony huffed out a laugh. "Some terrorists, kid. They wanted weapons. And, well, how did I escape? Tomorrow. Tomorrow I'll tell you everything. For now, do you want to see the arc reactor?" He responded. 

"Duh!" Peter cried excitedly. Tony smirked, then pulled his shirt over his head. 

Peter's mouth fell open again, eyes widening in wonder. "Woah." He breathed quietly, reaching forward. Then he yanked his hand back as if he was burned. "Can I?"

His dad nodded, rolling his eyes. "You can touch it, tesoro." 

Peter reached forward again, fingers brushing over the cool metal. "You made that while you were kidnapped?" He wondered aloud. 

"In a cave." He bragged. 

It was Peter's turn to roll his eyes. "Cool." He said flatly. 

Tony guffawed. "Do you want to help or not?"

"Yes!" The boy exclaimed. 

"We're going to make a better one, Pete. One that'll last longer." His father informed him. 

"Cool." He gasped. 

"Alright, scan me, J." Tony commanded. 

"Processing. Shall I begin machining the parts?"

Peter stayed up as long as he could, but he was just a young boy, one with very bad sleeping habits, at that. And soon, he was slumped against the table, snoring softly, his glasses mushed against his face. 

Tony paused in his work to smile at his sleeping son. He wandered over to him, brushing his curls from his closed eyes and pressing a kiss to his forehead. "You need a haircut, bambino." He murmured softly. 

The boy obviously didn't respond, and Tony took a minute to just watch him. He'd missed this. He'd missed his son falling asleep in the lab with him. He remembered countless mornings he'd wake up with his son in a similar position across the table. 

With a grunt, Tony lifted his kid into his arms and began carrying him upstairs. Once he successfully tucked Peter into his bed, he turned to leave, but stopped at the door. "Night, buddy." He whispered. 

He didn't sleep that night, working to create a better heart.


	5. four

_**MALIBU, 2010** _

**PETER SCRUNCHED HIS** nose in disgust at the though of helping to replace the arc reactor.

"I don't wanna." He announced, pursing his lips.

Tony laughed softly. "You don't have to, kiddo. I wouldn't trust you with your fingers in my chest anyway." He teased.

"Hey! Why not?" Peter cried indignantly.

"Well, do you want to?"

" _No!_ "

Tony laughed. "JARVIS, call up to Pep." He commanded.

"Right away, Sir. You are connected."

"Pepper? How big are your hands?" He asked.

Peter frowned again. "That's a strange question to ask, don't you think?"

Tony shrugged. "It'll get her down here won't it?" He retorted softly.

After a pause, Pepper's voice came through, _"What?"_

"How big are your hands?" His dad repeated.

" _I don't under-"_

"Just get down here." Tony said impatiently.

"Don't be rude, Dad." He paused, a sudden question on his mind.

"What's asshole in Italian?"

Tony choked on a laugh just as Pepper came down.

"Stronzo. Don't tell anyone I taught you that." He said with a breathy laugh.

"Are you teaching Peter curse words agai- oh." Pepper stopped when she saw Tony lying in a chair, arc reactor in his hand.

"Show me your hands." His dad instructed.

"Don't be a stronzo, Dad." Peter scolded.

Tony huffed out a laugh. "What?" Pepper asked in disbelief.

"Just show me your hands." He said exasperatedly.

She did. "You got little hands like me, but I don't wanna do it." Peter said as of that explained anything.

"Perfect. Just like the monello over there said, your hands are small. I need you to help me." Tony declared.

"I remember that one!" Peter said excitedly. Then he frowned. "Wait, did you just call me a brat?"

"That's the thing keeping you alive?" His aunt asked breathlessly.

"Thats the thing that _wa_ s keeping me alive. Now it's an antique." He held up the new one, "This what will be keeping me alive for the foreseeable future."

"Amazing." Pepper said softly.

"I'm going to swap them out and switch all functions to the new unit." He said distractedly.

"Is it safe?" She asked.

"Nope," Peter said at the same time his dad said,

"Completely. First I need you to reach in and-"

"Reach in to where?" She interrupted.

Peter frowned, not feeling the light hearted mood anymore. No, now he was terrified his aunt would mess up. What if they went through all of this just for his dad to. . .

He shook his head. Those thoughts were very not welcome and never would be.

"The socket."

"What socket?"

"The chest socket. Listen carefully, because we have to do this in a matter of minutes."

Pepper nodded slowly. "Listen. I'm going to lift off the old chest piece-"

"Won't that make you die?"

Peter's head was whipping back and forth as they talked, and he was starting to get impatient.

"Not immediately. When I lift it off I need you to reach in and pull out the copper wire, alright?"

"Okay?"

She began to reach in, but pulled ot out, covered in a slimy substance. "Ew, the discharge. _Another_ reason I didn't want to." Peter commented.

"Pus!" Pepper cried.

"It's not pus. It's an inorganic plasma discharge. It's from the device, not my body."

She shuddered but reached back in. "Now just make sure you don't pull out the _magnet_! Oh, there's the magnet!" He cried, the EKG beside him beeping wildly.

Peter screamed as Pepper started to lower the magnet back in. "No, no, no, no!" He yelled in unison with his dad.

"Dont put it back in!" Tony exclaimed.

"Oh my gosh! What's happening?" Pepper cried.

"Oh, I'm just going into mild cardiac arrest." Tony grunted, quickly inserting the new reactor. He lied back with a sigh.

"I thought you said this was safe!" She snapped, shaking the discharge from her hands.

"Don't _ever_ make me do something like that again, Tony." She growled.

He sat up, looking to her emotionally. "Besides this guy," he gestures to Peter, "you're all I got."

Peter's eyes widened, and it was precisely then that he realized they were meant for each other.

Pepper looked away, grabbing the old reactor, and Peter thought they were about to kiss.

Sadly, they didn't. "What do you want me to do with this thing?" She asked.

"That thing? Throw it out. Incinerate it." His dad waved off.

"You don't want to keep it?"

"I've been called many things, but sentimental is not one of them." Tony responded, raising his brow.

"Will that be all, Mr. Stark?"

"That will be all, Miss Potts." Tony confirmed.

Peter decided then and there that Pepper wasn't his aunt anymore. No, she was going to be with his dad eventually, so that'd be weird.

Peter wat he'd her go and turned to his dad. "I am _not_ a brat." He said decisively.

Tony laughed, ruffling his curls. "Sure thing, brat."

Peter huffed. "I know you're not a brat, buddy. You're anything but. Now, you wanna help me out with a super secret project?"

Peter lit up, nodding excitedly. "No telling Aunt Pepper." Tony warned.

"Kay. Shes not my aunt no more, though." He said casually.

Tony jolted in shock. "What? Why?"

"Well, you're going to marry her some day, and it would be weird if I called my Dad's wife 'Aunt'." He explained.

Tony choked, coughing harshly. Peter patted his dad's back with a shit-eating grin.

"You little-" Tony cut himself off with a groan.

"Wanna know how I escaped?" He asked, changing the subject completely.

"Yeah!"

"J, pull up the blueprints. Let's get to work."


	6. five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry it's taken me so long please forgive me and read this trashy story

_**MALIBU, 2010** _

**"SO, A SUIT?** You're going to make an armor suit?" Peter marveled as he watched his dad fit a pair of high tech metal boots onto his feet.

"I made one to escape the bad guys, but now I'm going to make a new and improved one." Tony explained, flexing his feet in the boots.

"Woah, really? Cool!" Peter cried incredulously, pushing his glasses up his nose as he bounced in excitement.

"Yep! Wanna help me mark a test circle in tape? The roll's over there." His dad responded, hooking his thumb over his shoulder toward the workbench.

"Sure! I can't exactly make a circle, though, because tape can't really do that-"

"Peter, just make a large roundish shape." His dad interrupted flatly.

Peter giggled and quickly marked the ground with a few pieces of tape, then walked back over and dropped down onto the workbench with a large smile.

"Ready to record the big moment, JARVIS?" Tony asked.

"All sensors ready, Sir." He responded.

Peter was bouncing his legs in giddy excitement. His dad was going to be a _superhero_ soon!

"We'll start off easy. Ten percent." Tony announced.

Peter frowned. "Wouldn't that be-" his dad flew up, slamming into the wall, then back down to the ground. "-much?"

The boy jumped up, running over to Tony. "Dad! Are you okay?"

Tony groaned. "That flight yielded excellent data, Sir." JARVIS declared.

Peter's hand flew to his mouth as he bursted out laughing. "Hey! Betrayal, my own kids!"

Peter laughed harder, and Tony could almost imagine JARVIS' smug smirk.

"I think I know what this needs." The billionaire suddenly announced.

Peter blinked, still smiling as his laughs finally subsided. "What?"

"How would you like to pay a visit to Uncle Rhodey?"

"Yeah!"

* * *

"Manned or unmanned, which is the future of air combat? For my money, no drone, no computer will ever trump a pilot's instincts. His reflexes, his judgement-" His Uncle Rhodey was droning on, until he was suddenly interrupted. 

"Why not take it a step further?" Tony chimed, walking forward with one hand gripping his son's.

"Why not. . . a pilot without the plane?" He continued. 

Peter scrunched his nose. Out of context, it just sounded silly. 

"That, I'd like to see. Look who fell out of the sky, everyone! Mr. Tony Stark!"

The cadets all started clapping, before Rhodey waved them off. 

Tony and Peter walked up to him as the pilots trickled off. "Didn't think I'd be seeing you for a while." Rhodey admitted.

"Why not?" Peter questioned. 

The man smiled lightly at his nephew. "I figured your dad would need a little time, buddy." 

Peter only frowned more in confusion. "Why does everybody think I need time?" His dad complained. 

Peter looked down, scraping his sneakers across the cement as he lightly kicked a rock back and forth.

"You've been through a lot, Tones. You should get your head straight." Rhodey said, face softening. 

Peter found himself smiling about how much his uncle cared about his dad. 

"I've got it straight, and I'm working on something big. I want you to be in on it." Tony insisted. 

Peter looked up, grinning excitedly. 

"Lots of people around here will be happy to hear that. What you said at the press conference really threw everyone." He responded, relief in his voice. 

"I mean what I said." His dad argued. 

"Yeah, it's something else, Uncle Rhodey." Peter added. 

"No you don't. You took a bad hit. It spun you around." His Uncle said as he shook his head.

Peter's smile fell. 

Tony glanced down at his son, hiding his disappointment. "Maybe I do need a little time." 

For some reason, Peter found his eyes watering. "All right then. Good seeing you." Rhodey replied. 

"Likewise." Tony said stiffly, turning and walking off, peter by his side. 

Peter tried to hide his sniffle but his dad noticed anyway. Once they got back into the car, Tony sat in the back with Peter as Happy drove them back to the mansion. 

"Hey bambino, what's wrong?" He murmured, brushing his son's tears away. 

Peter looked up into his dad's eyes. "Why doesn't Uncle Rhodey want to help?" His voice broke as he asked. 

"Hey, hey, he'll come around, buddy. He just doesn't understand right now, alright?" Tony soothed, sifting his hand through Peter's curls. 

Peter nodded, burying his face in his dad's side.

* * *

"It looks so cool! Dad, you're _awesome_!" Peter cried, eyes lit up in awe. 

"I know." Tony said smugly, poking his son in the cheek. Peter rolled his eyes and batted his dad's hand away. 

"You're pretty great too, tesoro, you helped out a lot." The man complimented. 

Peter rolled his eyes again. "Yeah right. All I did was what you told me to." 

"Yeah, well you did it with dignity and grace." Tony retorted. 

Peter giggled once again, and his dad let out a burst of RT from his palm.

He yelped as it tipped over a toolbox, scattering wrenches. "Thought you were done with weapons," Pepper said as she walked in. 

Peter smiled at her. "It's a flight stabilizer. Totally harmless." Tony said. 

Peter narrowed his eyes at his dad for a moment, gaze shooting to the wrenches. 

"Well, watch where you're pointing you 'flight stabilizer', would you?" Peter nodded for his dad, "Obadiah's upstairs, should I tell him you're in?"

Peter gasped and jumped up, ignoring whatever else they said in order to run upstairs. "Uncle Obie!" He called excitedly, running over to the man and giving him a big hug. 

Obadiah's chuckled, bringing one arm up to wrap around his honorary nephew. "Hey, kiddo. Want some pizza?" 

Peter looked to the pizza box and his eyes lit up. He jumped back up and ran over to the box. "From _New York_? Awesome!" 

He then grabbed a slice and shoved as much of it as he could in his mouth. Sitting down by his uncle, Peter swung his legs a bit as he ate the savory food. 

When his dad and Pepper came up, Tony smiled slightly at his kid, before looking to Obadiah.

"Why don't you head back down to the lab, kiddie?" He urged. 

Peter pouted. "But _Dad_ , Uncle Obie brought pizza!" He said, once he'd finished chewing, and gestured to the half eaten slice in his hand. 

Tony raised a brow. "Take the box, I'm sure Uncle Obie won't mind, will he?" 

Peter looked to his uncle. "Of course not. Go ahead, Peter." 

He jumped up with a grin and grabbed the box, skipping down the stairs two at once. 

"Careful on the stairs!" Pepper scolded, and Peter totally didn't completely ignore her. 

* * *

When Tony returned, troubled from his conversation with Obadiah's, he found Peter asleep at the lab table once again, with his head in his arms and a bit of pizza sauce on his cheek. 

His son had always been a messy eater. Wiping Peter's cheek, Tony got to work.


	7. six

_**MALIBU, 2010** _

**"THIS IS THE** coolest thing ever!" Peter exclaimed bouncing happily as he stared in awe at the suit. His Dad was wearing the completed prototype that they'd been working on for weeks, and now it was finally done. 

Peter had never seen anything as cool as it. "Can I try it on?" He questioned, though he was pretty sure he already knew the answer. 

He could practically _feel_ the flat look his dad was giving him from behind the armor. "Yeah, how about, _no._ " 

Peter giggled at his tone. "Alright, back up bambino." Tony said seriously, and Peter obeyed, eyes lighting up as his dad began to lift of the ground. 

He then crashed backward into one of his cars. The nine year old let out a bout of laughter as his dad groaned in annoyance. "Yeah, yeah, laugh it up."

"Alright," After standing and righting himself, Tony glanced around. "Let's take this outside." 

"Woah, really? Is it ready?" Peter asked with an awed breath. 

"Sure is." Tony spoke over whatever JARVIS said. 

"Is Jarvis in the suit already?" He wondered aloud. 

"Yep! You stay in here and watch from the window, alright?" His dad said. 

"Duh. It's cold out." Peter responded, rolling his eyes. 

"Alright, let's go JARVIS." And then his Dad was gone, flying out into the sky. 

Despite having worked on the suit with his dad and knowing what it was going to do, an amazed gasp slipped from his lips and he pressed himself against the window, eyes roaming the sky as he saw Tony going higher and higher. 

His dad could _fly_! 

A permanent smile seemed to be painted on his lips as he squinted to keep sight of the suit, getting smaller in his vision the farther up it went. 

Peter's smile faltered a bit when he realized just how high he was getting. It was super cold up there, surely ice would start forming on the suit. His dad would come back down soon, right?

A heavy sigh left him as Tony began to fall back down to the earth. Peter froze, feeling his heart in his throat as his dad continued to fall. _Fall_. The suit wasn't working. He was just falling. 

"Dad." He whispered in horror, eyes widening. Tears stung his eyes suddenly. What if he couldn't stop falling? 

"Dad!" Peter yelled, despite knowing the man couldn't hear him. 

A shuddering breath of relief escaped him as just before Tony hit the ground, he regained control of the suit and flew toward the mansion. 

Peter flinched as his dad crashed through the roof, landing on one of the cars. "Dad!" He cried, running over. 

"I'm okay, kid." Tony panted. 

"Don't _do_ that!" The nine year old snapped, his chin trembling. Tony's face softened as he looked to his son. 

"Hey, kiddo, I'm sorry. It won't happen again, alright?"

Peter glared at his dad, then crossed his arms and stormed up the stairs.

"Pete- Bambi, wait!" Tony cried.

Peter ignored him and ran all the way up to his room. "JARVIS, lock my door please." He said quietly, walking over to his bed.

"Right away, Young Sir." JARVIS responded dutifully.

Peter felt tears sting his eyes, and stubbornly blinked them away.

"If I may ask," the AI hedged, "are you alright?"

Peter sniffled, dropping onto his bed and pulling his knees up to his chest. "Dad doesn't even care." He mumbled, blinking away tears. 

“Of course Sir cares.” JARVIS said, sounding confused. 

“ _No_ ,” Peter whined, pulling his blanket up and over him, “he doesn’t care the he could _die_.” His voice broke on the last word. The AI didn't respond, and Peter slipped his glasses off his face, setting them on his bedside table and rubbing at his eyes. 

“I have a feeling this isn’t just about the recent accident, is it?”

“He was gone for three months, JARVIS, and Uncle Obie kept saying he was probably gone and- and he got kidnapped by terrorists. He could have died and I would have lost him and I would be alone.” A small sob slipped from his throat. 

“I don’t wanna be alone. I don’t want him to die.” Peter sniffled, hugging his blanket to his chest uselessly. 

JARVIS was silent for a few moments, before he finally spoke up again, “I don’t believe that Sir has any wishes to leave you. Perhaps speaking with him would be best?” He suggested. 

Peter frowned, shaking his head. He glanced to his door for a minute, wondering if his dad was going to come in and apologize again. After a few seconds, he realized how stupid that sounded. 

He was the one being dumb, not his dad. With a heavy sigh, Peter lied down, staring at the wall. Just before he drifted off, JARVIS spoke up once again, “Sir wishes for me to tell you that he is leaving for the third annual Firefighter Family Fun benefit, and that he will be back soon.”

Peter nodded, his eyes drooping, and slowly fell asleep. Little did he know, his life was about to get a whole lot crazier.


	8. seven

**_MALIBU, 2010_ **

**PETER BLINKED AWAKE** with a groan, feeling a hand lightly nudging his shoulder. "Pete, buddy, it's Pepper." The person murmured quietly.

The young boy squinted at her, his vision blurry. "What?" He questioned, confused. Pepper smiled at him.

"Do you know where your dad is, bud?" She questioned. Peter sat up tiredly, rubbing at his puffy eyes.

"Probably in his lab." He answered finally, reaching over to grab his glasses, then slipping them on his face. She sighed.

"That's probably true. Come on down and get some breakfast, sweetheart, you've been asleep for a while." The redhead urged, a hand on his arm.

Peter slipped out of his bed, socked feet landing on the ground silently. "Okay Pepper." He mumbled, following her out.

Because he was still tired and his gaze was on the ground, he didn't notice Pepper's confused face. As they made it downstairs, Peter veered toward the kitchen, sighing.

"JARVIS, do we have any of the chocolate granola bars left?" He asked as he walked toward the cupboard.

"I'm afraid not, Young Sir. You do, however, have some regular cereal bars left." The AI responded, even as Peter saw that for himself.

He scrunched his nose up in disappointment but grabbed one anyway, turning as he saw Pepper walk down the stairs to his dad's lab. He was still mad at his dad, but his curiosity got the better of him and he quickly ran after the woman.

"Sir, the more you struggle, the more this is going to hurt." JARVIS was saying to him as they got down there.

The young boy's eyes widened as some very strange things flitted across his mind. "Be gentle, this is my first time." His dad was whining.

"What the fanculo." Peter muttered. (He'd remembered that one.)

"Come on, I designed this thing to come off." Tony grumbled as Peter and Pepper finally caught sight of him, gaping with wide eyes.

"Please try not to move." Peter heard JARVIS say with a hint of exasperation in his voice.

The boy's mouth dropped open. The suit was done and full of. . . bullet holes. Did his dad not care about what he'd said at all? Did he just not care?

"What's going on here?" Pepper interrogated, eyes narrowed.

His dad froze, eying them. "Let's face it, this isn't the worst thing you've caught me doing."He said sheepishly.

And if that wasn't true, Peter didn't know what was. A name crossed his mind, a Christine something.

"Are those bullet holes?" Pepper asked breathlessly. Peter crossed his arms, looking away.

Tony caught his movements and sighed. "Look, I'm sorry, bambino." He said to him with a small frown. Peter huffed.

After JARVIS had successfully removed the suit from him, the billionaire hopped down to speak to them. "Look, Pep, this is something I've gotta do, okay?" He stressed.

"This is the secret project you two have been working on? A-a metal suit? What are you, some kind of superhero?" She gasped, still shocked.

"Hell no. I'm no hero. I'm just trying to write my wrongs." Tony explained, sighing yet again.

Peter glared. "Yeah, without caring that you could die." The boy spat angrily.

Tony looked to his son, eyes conflicted. He knew he'd need to talk to him soon, a serious, real talk, but right now, he didn't have time for that. Later, he promised himself.

"Pete, can you head upstairs please, while I talk to Pepper?" He finally asked.

"Sometimes I wish you never came back from Afghanistan." Peter whispered icily.

Scoffing, he spun on his heel and stormed upstairs. With each thing his dad said and did, he was starting to feel like maybe his opinion really didn't matter. His dad always said that Peter's thoughts mattered to him, but ever since he came back from Afghanistan, things had been weird.

Going upstairs, Peter dropped onto the couch, tossing his unfinished granola bar beside him and hugging his knees to his chest. He blinked back unshed tears as he thought of how things used to be.

Sure, his dad was stubborn and kinda rude to Pepper sometimes, but he had listened. He never risked his life before. Before, he was just Peter's dad. He wasn't a superhero with a crazy advanced suit that got shot at.

He didn't mean what he'd said. God, he didn't mean it. He'd spent every waking moment of those three months waiting for his dad to come home. Sniffling, Peter wiped away his tears. All he seemed to do was cry and complain lately. A sudden thought made him jolt in guilt and terror. He wished he'd never met his dad.

A soft sob slipped from his throat and he buried his face in the couch. As soon as the words had crossed his mind, he regretted them. He couldn't imagine not growing up with his dad and his uncles and Pepper and JARVIS.

Hearing heels coming up the stairs, he stilled himself, still crying silently, but out of view of Pepper. "Pete? Sweetie, are you okay?" She called softly.

"Mhm." He mumbled quietly. Not hearing her walk way, he asked, "Where are you going?"

She hesitated for aa few seconds before answering, "Just to your dad's office to get something for him. I'll be back soon."

Nodding simply, Peter finally heard her walk away, and continued his moping. "JARVIS, you know I didn't mean what I said to Dad, right?" He asked. For some reason, it was important that the AI knew that.

He'd tell his dad that too, of course, but not right now. Right now, he had no idea what to feel or think. "Of course, Young Sir." JARVIS responded, with a hint of sadness and understanding.

After about an hour or so of moping sadly and struggling to dry his tears, Peter heard his dad start up the stairs, and he sat up in panic. He wasn't ready to face the man yet, not with red and puffy eyes and the fact that he was sure to break down.

Quickly, he darted to the stairs going upstairs and hid behind the wall, watching Tony come up. His eyes flicked to his dad's hand as he saw that Pepper was calling.

Peter's eyes widened suddenly as he saw his Uncle Obie. What was Uncle Obie doing there? His dad didn't seem to see him yet, and went to answer Pepper, when his uncle suddenly pulled something out, and pulled the phone from his hand.

Peter gasped quietly, slapping his hand over his mouth and stumbling back a step as Obadiah lowered Tony onto the couch. What was the man doing to his dad?

Panic clenched tight at the boy's lungs as he began to tremble. He minutely heard Pepper calling to his dad from the phone, but his Uncle Obie hung up on her.

"Breathe," Obadiah sung, holding up a device, "you remember this one, right? It's a shame he government didn't approve. There are so many applications regarding short-term paralysis."

Tears stung Peter's eyes for what seemed to be the billionth time, but this time they weren't of sadness, no, they were of complete and absolute terror.

"Ah, Tony. When I ordered the hit on you. . ." He began.

What?

"I was worried that I was killing the golden goose. But, you see, it was just fate that you survived it. You had one last golden egg to give." Obadiah was saying and Peter almost cried out in terror when he saw that his uncle was taking the arc reactor. That would kill his dad!

"You really think that just because you have an idea, it belongs to you?" Uh, yeah? "Your father, he helped to give us the atomic bomb. Now what kind of world would it be today if he was as selfish as you?"

Peter's chin trembled as he struggled with what he was supposed to do.

"Oh, it's beautiful. Ah, Tony. . . this is your Ninth Symphony. What a masterpiece! Look at that!"

"This is your legacy, the generation of weapons, with this at its heart. The weapons that will help stir the world back on course. With the balance of power in our hands in the right hands. I wish you could see my prototype, it's not as. . . not as conservative as yours."

Peter saw the moment his dad saw him, eyes widening slightly, and the boy slunk backwards a bit.

"Too bad you had to involve Pepper in this. I would've preferred that she lived." Obadiah finally finished his monologue.

Peter let out a scared whimper, and pressed his hand more firmly into his mouth, thankful that his uncle somehow hadn't heard him. Finally, the older man stalked from the house.

"Daddy!" Peter shrieked, sprinting out from his hiding spot and reaching for his dad with scared, shaking hands.

"Lab," the man gasped, panting, "reactor."

He nodded slowly, sprinting down the stairs because he knew he was too impatient for the elevator, and jabbed the code into the door, whipping his head around the room to find it.

Within seconds he spotted it on the table and went to grab it, noticing in annoyance that it had a glass casing. Still panicking, he smashed it against the table, the glass shattering, and winced as his hands were sliced.

But he had it. Now he just had to get it to Tony. Spinning around, he gasped. His dad was stumbling from the elevator. "Dad!" He cried, running to the man that quickly fell to the ground.

Tears dropped from Peter's face as he quickly shoved the reactor into the gaping hole in the man's chest. "Oh god, oh god, oh god. Daddy please be okay." He sobbed, hand clasped over his mouth once again.

Tony panted in relief, eyes fluttering closed for a moment. Peter yelled, shaking his shoulders. "No! Don't sleep!"

The billionaire's eyes shot open and a small smile flickered on his lips. "'m okay, tesoro." He rasped.

Just then, Rhodey burst into the room. "Tony!" He cried.

Peter's head shot up and his eyes widened. "Uncle Rhodey! It's Uncle Obie! He hurt dad!"

"Are you okay?" Rhodey demanded, concerned.

"Where's Pepper?" Tony returned instead, and Peter was struck with realization as he remembered the man's words. Oh god, he was going to hurt Auntie Pepper!

"She's fine. She's with five agents that are about to arrest Obadiah." His uncle said in slight confusion at their worry.

"That's not gonna be enough." Tony said gravely.

"Yeah! Uncle Obie said he had a suit like Dad's and he took the arc reactor to power it!" Peter exclaimed.

After Peter and Rhodey helped the man stand, Tony immediately ran for his suit, and Peter came over to help him put it on. He was worried for his dad's safety, of course, but Tony had to save Pepper.

"That is the coolest thing I've ever seen." Rhodey admitted, and the part of the boy that wasn't panicking was glad that his uncle was finally on board with the suit. Then again, another small part of him felt sour about it, not sure if he supported it anymore.

"Not bad, huh? Let's do it." The man responded with a smirk.

"Anything else you need me to do, man?" Rhodey questioned.

"Yeah, keep the skies clear and watch my kid." Tony said with a small smile to Peter.

The young Stark rubbed at his eyes once again and stepped forward to wrap his arms around his dad quickly. "Be careful, please." He begged softly.

"Of course, bambi. Gotta go now." His father muttered, then shot into the sky.

Peter stared up, his uncle's hand on his shoulder, and waited.


	9. eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i am very sorry that i’ve taken so long, i’ve been really trying to update, but i have so many stories to procrastinate about, and i’ve got a lot of things going on and my mental health isn’t the best, but i’ll try to update again as soon as i can

**_MALIBU, 2010_ **

**SHIFTING FROM FOOT** to foot, Peter eyed his dad nervously, watching as Pepper ripped the bandage from his nose. They'd been bantering for a bit but Peter didn't really start to listen to their conversation until his dad began saying something interesting. 

"You know, if I were Iron Man, I'd have this girlfriend who knew my true identity." Tony drawled, and despite Peter's internal dilemma, his eyes lit up in excitement. It was finally happening!

"She'd be a wreck, of course, 'cause she'd always be worrying that I was going to die, yet so proud of the man I'd become." The boy rolled his eyes, but couldn't deny the truth to it. His dad had barely started off as the so called Iron Man, and yet he was terrified he was going to lose him. 

"She'd be wildly conflicted, which would only make her more crazy about me." Tony said, eyes boring straight into Pepper's.

Peter looked between them, hiding a smile. "Tell me you never think about that night." The billionaire said softly. 

"What night?" Pepper asked with a small, playful smile. 

"You know."

"I do." She responded. 

Then she didn't say anything else, tilting her head. "So?" Tony hedged, and if Peter didn't know any better, he'd say his dad looked nervous. 

"Yeah. Yes." She finally responded. 

A broad grin spread across Peter's face, and a small giggle escaped him. The adults shot looks at him, but the boy didn't care. 

"Is that all Mr. Stark?" Pepper teased. 

"That's all Miss Potts." Standing, Tony adjusted his suit. 

"Me and you need to talk when this is done, alright Bambi?" The man said, dropping his hand onto his son's shoulder. 

He nodded softly, then beckoned his dad to bend down. Tony did so questioningly, and Peter whispered into his ear, "Told you so."

After huffing out a laugh, the older man made his way into the other room, and Peter walked over to Pepper so they could watch it together.

" _Thank you. Been a while since I was in front of you. I figure I'll stick to the cards this time."_ His dad joked, and Peter snickered, while Pepper only smiled softly. 

" _There's been speculation that I was involved in the events that occurred on the freeway and the rooftop. . ._ " And Peter rolled his eyes. Tony really didn't know when to stop. 

" _I'm sorry, Mr. Stark, but do you honestly expect us to believe that that was a bodyguard in a suit that conveniently appeared, despite the fact that you-"_ A man was saying, spiking a small bout of panic in the young boy, before his dad interrupted.

" _I know that it's confusing. It is one thing to question the official story, and another thing entirely to make wild accusations, or insinuate that I'm a superhero."_ The billionaire said, and the young Stark nearly cringed. No one had said that yet.

 _"I never said you were a superhero_." The man returned. 

" _Didn't? Well, good, because that would be outlandish and fantastic. I'm just not the hero type. Clearly. With this laundry list of character defects, all the mistakes I've made, largely public."_

Despite knowing his dad was just rambling, Peter couldn't help but wonder if _he_ was one of those mistakes. He'd been such a brat lately, and he wouldn't be surprised if Tony regretted ever taking him in. 

Tears rushed to his eyes as he watched Uncle Rhodey whisper something to his Dad, and he leaned into Pepper's side. The woman didn't hesitate to wrap her arm around him, and Peter continued to watch the screen. 

" _The truth is. . ."_

Oh no. Peter knew that face. He'd _made_ that face before. 

" _I am Iron Man._ "

The boy yelled, and Pepper gasped, dropping her hand to her side. He watched with wide eyes as his dad began walking back toward them, ignoring the yelling reporters, and gasped at him as he came back in. 

"Hi, please don't hurt me." He said immediately to Pepper. 

The strawberry blonde glared at him. "I have to go put out tons of fires now, so I'll probably be busy for the next few days." She said finally, sighing. 

Before she could turn to leave, Tony grabbed her wrist lightly. "Not. . . too busy, right?" He asked anxiously. 

Pepper sighed again and stepped forward. "No, not too busy. Have to see my nephew at some point, right?" Peter would've smiled, but instead he cringed as they began kissing. 

Sure, he wanted them to be together, but they were _kissing._ That was nasty! "Yuck." He grumbled, looking away. 

He then heard the sound of his dad's laugh, and glared over at the two. "See you, Pep."

"Goodbye Tony. See you, sweetheart." She said, turning to walk off. 

"Bye Pepper!" Peter called, waving. 

Then his gaze finally returned to his dad, and his stomach became a ball of nerves all over again. "So that talk, huh?" 

Peter nodded, his eyes on the ground as he once again began shifting back and forth on his feet. Tony sighed, crouching to the boy's level. 

"Look, Pete, I know that it's scary, me being out there, but I can't not do this, bud. Being. . . well, Iron Man, I guess, it helps people. It got my weapons out of some pretty bad people's hands, and it saved a whole lot of good ones. There's still some pretty bad people out there, and this helps me get rid of them." He explained, his hands on Peter's shoulders. 

Tears stung his eyes. He knew he was being selfish, knew his dad was only trying to help people, but he still didn't want him to. He wanted his dad safe. 

"I know you help people." Peter whispered, "but I don't want you to." 

Tony jolted in shock, opening his mouth to speak, but the boy beat him to it. "I don't want to lose you." And suddenly the billionaire understood. "Y-You've been my dad for six years, and I've never had to worry about whether or not you'll come home every day before." 

Despite wanting to speak up, Tony bit his lip and let Peter continue. "You were gone for three months, and U- Obadiah k-kept saying you were dead, and n-nobody could find you and the kids at school said I was an orphan now, and I just missed you so bad." Peter's voice broke and he wiped tears from the corners of his eyes. 

"I don't want you to go. I haven't had you long enough, and I know it's selfish, but I just, I-" Peter couldn't keep speaking even if he tried, as sobs interrupted him, causing his whole body to shake. 

"Oh, buddy." Tony's voice cracked as he gathered his crying son into his arms. 

"I-I didn't m-mean w-w-what I said. I d-don't wi-ish you were gone." He sobbed, his tears soaking his dad's shirt.

"Oh, tesoro, I know. Baby, I know. You're the sweetest kiddo I've ever known, and you were upset, I knew you didn't mean it." He began to sift his fingers through the young boy's hair, rubbing circles on his back. 

"I don't want you to go." Peter cried, muffled.

"I won't," Tony swore, though he knew there'd be a day that was a lie. "I won't leave you, Pete."

"Promise?" Peter asked once his cries had mostly subsided. 

"I promise." It absolutely shattered his heart to lie to his son, but it soothed him, and he didn't plan on going anywhere anytime soon. 

It wasn't long before Peter was slowly lulled to sleep by Tony's arms around him, and the man stood, holding his son against his chest. His knees thanked him, and he took his boy home. 

* * *

“I’m here to talk to you about the Avengers Initiative.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> before anyone goes around saying “pepper and tony didn’t get together in im1” yes i know that, but it made me very dissatisfied. pepper knows that tony left so he could fight terrorists and get his weapons out of their hands, so why would she feel mad about that? like, pep, sweetie, i love you but you’re a bit self-centered in this movie. and, if you haven’t noticed, that’s a wrap of iron man, guys! iron man 2 is next, get ready for my second favorite avenger to come in! love you all <3


	10. nine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> let me just say, from the bottom of my heart, my bad. to be fair, 2020 has been an extremely insane year and I was working on like a billion other stories. but here this is!

**_MALIBU, 2011_ **

" **MY BOND IS** _with the people. And I will serve this great nation at the pleasure of myself. If there's one thing I've proven it's that you can count on me to pleasure myself."_

Peter was watching a replay of the trial lazily, draped across the couch upside down.

He would have watched it live, but he'd been assembling one of his Lego sets in his room, under the watchful eye of JARVIS. "Was that an innuendo? Please tell me that wasn't an innuendo." Peter curled his nose in disgust, glancing away from the screen. 

"You know me, Pete. I couldn't help myself." Came his dad's voice from the doorway as he strolled in. 

"Dad! You're back! Can we go to the lab now?" Peter cried in excitement, sitting up and blinking through the rush of blood in his head. Tony huffed out a laugh as he shoved his hands in his pockets.

"Ouch. No 'Hey, Dad! How've you been?' or, 'That was an awesome argument you put up, Dad!'?"

"I do not sound like that." Peter defended indignantly, sniffing as he lifted his head. 

"I'm pretty sure you do. I've known you for almost seven years now, I'm pretty sure I know what you sound like." He argued, tilting his head with a small grin. 

"Well, I've known me for almost ten years, so I know what I sound like. It's literally my own voice, Dad." The boy sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Actually, It's been scientifically proven that nobody knows what their own voice actually sounds like. Therefore-"

"Oh my God, Dad, can we please go down to the lab now?" Pete groaned, throwing his head back in annoyance. 

Something in his dad's face stuttered, and the air around them suddenly felt different. "Not right now actually, kiddo." He said, sounding regretful. "I've got some stuff to work on that's not for kids."

Peter's mouth fell open as he gaped. "You let me work on the Iron Man armor!" The brunet exclaimed, crossing his arms over his chest. 

"Yeah, I know. Look, it's not going to be kept a secret forever, okay? You'll find out soon enough." His dad told him, letting out a weary sigh and running his hand over his face. The boy shifted slightly, and couldn't help but notice the darker tone he'd said it in.

"Okay." Peter agreed softly, nodding, and his dad's face softened. 

"I didn't mean to make you sad, tesoro. What do you say, for dinner, you and me get some pizza and watch Star Wars?" Tony suggested, clapping his hands together, and Peter couldn't contain his smile. How could he say no to that?

"Okay, fine." The boy mumbled, sitting back where he was and picking up the remote to change the channel of the TV that had been playing some random dude droning on about his dad's most recent trial. 

"Great! I'll be down in the lab, Kiddie, and don't worry, I won't be long. Have J get me if you need anything." And with that, the man was making his way down the stairs to the lab. Peter rolled his eyes at his dad's antics, but couldn't help the small undertone of worry. Something was off.

Looking back to the TV, he began to mindlessly scroll through channels, and not even five minutes later, Pepper came storming into the mansion with anger in her eyes and determination set on her face. 

"Are you okay, Pepper?" He asked, uncertain.

She shot him a smile, despite looking extremely stressed. "I'm fine, Sweetheart. Just a cold. Your father is in the lab, I presume?"

"Yep." Peter smacked his lips on the 'P'.

She nodded firmly. "Thank you." And she was gone just as fast as his dad was. He let out a sigh.

"My family is weird." He sighed out, settling on rewatching The Office on Netflix. 

"That it is, Young Sir, that it is." JARVIS said gravely, and Peter couldn't help but laugh.

* * *

Later that night, when Tony and Pepper came up, they told him that his dad had made her CEO until Peter was of age, and he nearly fainted, firing off a million questions a minute, until Tony finally declared that was enough and ordered enough pizza to last them at least three days. 

He fell asleep curled into his dad's side with his feet in Pepper's lap, and he felt good. Days like these, where they could all relax were few and far between, so he cherished them. Right then, he was happy.

* * *

"What the hell, Dad?" Peter cried the second Tony came into his line of sight, jumping up with wide eyes.

"First off, did you seriously wait in the kitchen of my private plane to attack me? And second, watch your profanity, young man." The billionaire conversed casually as he produced a frying pan and set it on the small, in-flight stove. As he turned and began rifling in the fridge, Peter gaped.

"You fought an evil guy with electric whips! And I saw the news, he had an arc reactor powering that exoskeleton! I repeat, what the hell, Dad?"

Tony spun, pointing a carton of eggs at him. "Saying it twice doesn't make the answer magically appear. And it's not like I was planning on getting attacked. I don't know how he had an arc reactor yet, as poorly made as it was. I'm figuring it out."

"Like you're figuring out that omelette?" Peter asked, raising a brow as he pushed his glasses up his nose. 

"I'm doing wonderfully, thank you very much. You need to get your glasses tightened, you're always pushing them up. Remind me when we get home, I'll fix 'em." Tony rambled, using a spatula on the weird, egg monstrosity he was creating as if he knew what he was doing. 

"Dad, you have to wait for it to cook a little before you try to flip it. Why are you making an omelette? And don't you think there are more pressing matters than my glasses? That guy is clearly an issue." The younger Stark critiqued, his brows furrowing.

"That guy, is in prison. He's not a problem anymore. I'm making Pep an omelette as an apology of sorts. I haven't been making a lot of time for you lately, Pete, I just want to help."

Peter startled, sitting on the counter as he watched his dad fail at cooking like every other time he'd tried in his life. "What are you talking about, Dad? You've got a ton of responsibilities and I've always understood it. Plus, you're always there for me when it counts." He argued, wondering where this was coming from. If anything, his dad had started spending more time with him the past few months.

Tony let out a sigh, letting his attention be directed on his son instead of the eggs. "You're one of those responsibilities, cucciolo, the biggest one. And, I should've been there a lot more than I have been. I want to spend time with you, before it's too late."

Not even wanting to begin to fathom what that could possibly mean, the boy frowned. "What do you mean 'before it's too late'?" He questioned.

His dad seemed to be contemplating something for a few seconds, before he shook his head with a small sigh. "Before you grow up, Pete. Before you're not my little boy anymore, and I wasted your entire childhood being an absent father."

Peter looked to him sharply. "You have not wasted my childhood, and you're not an absent father. You've taken care of me, and you've loved me like nobody else. You're my dad, and we have forever to spend time together. I'll still be your son, even when I'm a grownup." For some reason, the boy felt tears stinging his eyes.

His face tight, Tony reached over to brush away the tears that were beginning to fall. "And I'll always be your father." He promised, smiling softly. 

A small grin tugged at Peter's lips, and he leaned forward to hug his dad. Tony returned the embrace immediately, resting his chin on top of his son's curls. " _I_ _love_ _you_ , _Peter_." He whispered quietly in Italian, letting his eyes slip closed.

_"I love you, too."_

For a while, they just sat there holding each other, but Tony finally pulled away, smiling a smile that was reserved solely for his kid. "You have such a way with words for a nine year old."

Peter smiled sweetly. "The omelette is burning."

" _Shit_!"


	11. ten

_**MALIBU, 2011** _

**"MUTE," TONY SAID** as he and his son exited the kitchen of the jet. "He should be giving me a medal, that's the truth."

He was referring to Senator Stern, and Peter took a moment to imagine that, letting a smile tug at the corners of his lips.

"What is that?" The ginger asked, and Peter followed her gaze to the charred omelette his dad was setting on the table.

"This is your in-flight meal."

"Wait, you're feeding that to Pepper? Dad, she'll drop dead from like, sniffing it." Peter breathed, eyes widening.

"Did you just make that?" The woman questioned, eying it suspiciously.

"Yeah, where do you think we've been for three hours?"

"To be fair, we were talking a bit too. We weren't cooking an egg for a full three hours." Peter interjected, plopping down next to his dad, hesitantly poking at the poor omelette he'd witnessed being made.

"Tony, what are you not telling us?" Pepper asked softly, and Peter glanced up at her. So she'd noticed it too.

The hesitance, the way he seemed to be hiding away from them, hiding _something_ from them.

"I don’t want to go home," Tony spoke suddenly, and Peter jolted, blinking owlishly at him. "At all. Let’s cancel my birthday party and. . . We’re in Europe. Let’s go to Venice, Cipriani. Remember?"

He must've been talking about something before he was born, but that didn't change the fact that he knew something was wrong now. Dad _always_ had a huge birthday party. 

"Oh, yes." Pepper grimaced at whatever memory Tony had just reminded her of, and Peter started chewing on the inside of his cheek, observing the interaction in front of him.

"It's a great place to be healthy," the billionaire urged, spreading his arms out with what could only be described as one of his press smiles.

Peter pursed his lips. Something was wrong. He'd suspected it before, he'd worried, but he knew for sure now.

"I don't think this is is the right time. We're kind of a mess, Tony."

"Yeah, but maybe that's why it's the best time. Cause then we can-"

"Sort it out?" Peter finished, raising his brows questioningly.

"See, he's got the right idea!" His father exclaimed, but Pepper was already shaking her head.

"Well, I think as the CEO, I need to show up."

As they continued to bicker, Peter just watched his dad. He thought of a life without him, and his heart clenched painfully. Whatever was wrong, he was going to help make it right.

"Not everybody runs on batteries, Tony," Pepper murmured softly, leaning forward to put her hand on his knee.

Peter leaned into Tony's side, his brows furrowed slightly. _Why_ , he thought, _did he seem disappointed?_

* * *

When they arrived back at the Malibu mansion, Tony asked Happy to take Peter for a ride until he could deal with something, and he stalked inside confidently and found both women talking on their phones, and he crooked his finger at the redhead. 

"Come with me," he instructed, and without looking to see if she was following, he took the steps down to his lab two at a time, wincing at the ache in his chest that he knew without a doubt would always be there. 

"Do you need something, Mr. Stark?" She asked, eying a few pieces of discarded Legos on one of the tables. 

"Just one thing, Natalia," he responded nonchalantly, hearing the way her breath hitched, and spinning around. "Sorry, my bad. Natalia and Natalie are so easy to mix up, you know?" 

Tony stared straight into the woman's eyes, watching as something like fear flickered in hers. Not quite, though. She hummed. "What is it?"

The billionaire dropped his smirk, walking up to her until they were nose to nose, and he admired how she didn't back down, staring at him just as intensely as he looked at her. "I know who you are, Miss Romanova," he told her, watching as a muscle in her jaw ticked. 

"I know you know about Peter, and I know who you work for. I figured it out the second I saw you." He was exaggerating a bit, of course. He'd suspected, but hadn't figured it out until he'd searched her. If he wasn't concerned for his son's safety, he didn't know if he'd have figured it out.

"Then you know that I know you're dying." Was her albeit expected response, and her hand twitched at her side, probably for a weapon hidden somewhere on her person. 

Tony fell back, sucking in a deep breath through his nose. "Yeah. I figured." He walked over to the table he'd been standing near before and picked up one of the Legos the woman had been looking at. 

He turned just his head so he could see her, though, watching him. "I may be dying, but if you do anything, and I mean anything, to put my son in danger, I will end you." Tony warned, completely serious.

The other woman nodded. "I'd never hurt a child, Stark."

She was a spy, a master of lies, someone he could probably never trust, but that he believed. What he'd read in her SHIELD file that he'd hacked into, it helped _make_ him believe.

"What do you want me to call you?" He asked absentmindedly, dropping the toy brick on the metal with a clack. 

For a minute, he didn't think she'd answer, but her voice finally found his ears, softer than before. "Natasha. Call me Natasha."

"You got it. As long as you call me Tony."

She nodded, taking a step back toward the stairs. "Is that all?"

Tony almost said yes, almost let her go, then turned to look at her one last time. "Cancel my party tonight."

He thought he saw something like a smile on her face as she left.

Later, when Rhodey came to him, witnessed him changing the core of his arc reactor, he handed over one of his suits. After he was gone, the world would need someone like James Rhodes. 

* * *

Tony had Happy bring Peter back. Pepper seemed shocked, her eyes widening when she heard him talking over the phone, and she eyed Nat distrustfully. "It's okay," he assured as Natasha watched them with a brow raised, "she knows."

" _What?_ Tony, literally nobody is supposed to know about him! We haven't known her a week!" Pepper cried, then looked to the other redhead. "No offense."

"None taken."

"Pep, it's okay. Really. I did a background check, she signed an NDA." He tried to soothe his girlfriend, grabbing her hands in his. He only lied about the last part technically.

Just then, the door slammed open. "Dad? Pepper?"

"Pete! In here!"

The boy came around the corner the next second, eyes curious and searching, and he immediately spotted the one person in the room he didn't know. 

"Who's this?" The brunet asked suspiciously, walking over to Pepper, who was closer, and leaning into her side to scowl at the new person. 

"This is Natalie, tesoro. She's our new assistant."

He didn't know what to say, simply stared at her. Natasha walked closer to him, crouching down to his height and offering a smile. "You can call me Nat," the spy told him, holding out her hand to shake his.

"So you're like an off brand Pepper?" Peter said, tilting his head. His dad laughed, and even Pepper cracked a smile. 

"I see you get your humor from your dad," Natasha said, smirking as Peter finally took her hand in his and shook it.

"Yep. And JARVIS and Uncle Rhodey." He nodded firmly, then glanced to his dad. 

"Um, are you still busy with your secret project?"

Tony held back a flinch at that, shaking his head

"No, sir. My party is cancelled too. I want to spend my birthday with my absolute favorite nine year old," he told him, smiling as he hoisted the boy up into his arms. 

Peter giggled, wrapping his arms around his dad's neck as the man dropped onto the couch. "Do you know any other nine year olds?" He questioned sarcastically. 

Tony gasped. "Well, of course! All my other secret sons!" He tossed the boy playfully onto the sofa and dug his fingers into his sides, grinning as Peter screeched with laughter and squirmed away from him. 

Pepper shook her head with a fond smile, and put her phone down. After Tony finally stopped tickling Peter, the boy sat up with a red face and straightened his glasses, then looked to Pepper with a wide smile. "Movie night?"

"I _guess_ I could clear my schedule. . ." She teased, and Tony struggled to hide the genuine smile tugging at his lips. 

"I'll be going, Mr. Stark," Natasha said politely, turning to head for the door, but Peter's head snapped to her in what seemed to be the speed of light.

"Stay!"

The redhead looked back to them, only halfway managing to hide the deer-in-headlights look on her face. "I'm sorry?"

"She can stay, right Dad?" The boy asked, a hopeful look on his face. 

"I wouldn't want to oppose," Natasha murmured, offering a small smile. Tony couldn't tell if it was real or not. 

"You won't be. Stay. Might as well," the billionaire said nonchalantly, shrugging.

With a hesitant nod, she walked back over and sat in the spot Pepper gestured to. "Star Wars, J. You know the one," Tony called, putting his arm on the back of the couch and feeling his son lean into his side, Pepper scooting close so his fingers brushed over her shoulder. 

Natasha sat a respective few inches away from Pepper, but close enough that she didn't look uncomfortable. 

"The prequels, I assume?" JARVIS responded, a joking tone to his voice, and Peter gasped, scandalized. 

_"No!"_ He cried, horrified, as Tony and Pepper laughed. "Empire Strikes Back!"

"My apologies, Young Sir." The AI responded, mirth in his voice as the movie started up. 

Natasha watched these people, watched as they teased each other and they laughed and they _loved_ , and she had no idea that she would soon become part of that. 

* * *

Later, when Natasha had quietly excused herself to go to the bathroom, and Pepper and Peter were passed out and leaning into each other, Tony stared at them, the most important people in his life, and his breath hitched.

Without anyone there to see, his mask dropped, and he looked down at Peter, whose head was in his lap, his feet in Pepper's, and he could feel stubborn tears pricking at his eyes. Shakily, he brushed his son's curls from his eyes, a weak smile finding his face at the sight of his glasses mushed against his nose and cheek. He carefully removed them from the boy's face and set them on the coffee table, leaning down to press a kiss to his forehead. 

"I love you, bambino. I love you so, so much," Tony whispered, his voice cracking and he felt a tear sliding down his face, wiping it away and clearing his throat. 

He wouldn't get to see his boy grow up, wouldn't get to see him have his first crush, wouldn't get to teach him how to drive, wouldn't get to watch him graduate or get married or have a life, and it broke his heart. This was his last birthday with his kid, and Peter didn't even know. 

His eyes found Pepper next, and he found the way a few strands of her hair had fallen from her ponytail to frame her face. He found that the light from the TV made it look like she was glowing, and it was a mesmerizing sight. 

He'd never told her he loved her, he realized. And he didn't know if he'd be able to, if he'd find the courage, but he did know he loved her. He'd been with her for almost a year now, and despite their ups and downs, he knew that he had probably loved her for years before he ever admitted it to himself.

Clearing his throat yet again, Tony carefully slipped out from under Peter, laying the boy's head gently on the spot he'd just vacated, and he strode towards the stairs to his lab, taking them two at a time for the second time that day. 

He didn't notice that Natasha had watched the exchange from the doorway, a contemplative look on her face.

As he climbed into his latest suit, he slid on a pair of sunglasses. "Find me the nearest donut place, J."


	12. eleven

**_MALIBU, 2011_ **

_**"DADDY, THE FLOOR** is lava!" Peter screeched as he ran by his father, making a running jump onto what was probably a pretty expensive couch. Tony couldn't stop himself from smiling, and gasped dramatically, stepping up onto the coffee table and giving his son a wide eyed look. _

_Peter burst into laughter at the sight of his father wearing a thousand dollar suit standing on top of a coffee table because of him. The six year old's laughter was contagious, and Tony found himself chuckling, about to step down, when the familiar clicking of heels a became apparent._

_The Starks froze, both slowly turning around to look as Pepper stalked in, a folder of papers in her arms. She didn't even look shocked, just blinked at them. "Wha- Why? Just why?"_

_"The floor is lava," Peter explained weakly, eyes wide. Unlike they expected, a grin spread across her face, and she climbed onto the coffee table with Tony, handing him the papers in her hands and talking to him like they weren't in ridiculous positions._

_Peter fell backwards on the couch, laughing hysterically, and that was when he realized Pepper loved his kid, probably about as much as he did._

Tony came back to the present slowly, his sunglasses on as he chewed on a chocolate donut almost comically slow. He'd always loved how much Pepper cared about Peter and vice versa, and he knew that when he was gone, Peter would be in good hands. After Afghanistan, Peter had ranted to him for days about how living with Pepper was cool, besides the fact that his dad wasn't there.

Closing his eyes briefly, he took yet another moment to grieve the life he couldn't have with them. "Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to exit the donut!" A familiar voice called up to him, making him blink and look down at the director of SHIELD. That was something he had really never expected to hear from that man. 

"I'm actually enjoying myself up here, thank you," he yelled down, stubbornly continuing to eat his donuts. Fury just gave him a flat look, and he sighed, flying down. 

He tossed the donut box in the trash as they walked inside to talk, a time where Tony normally would've been snarking with him, but he didn't have the energy anymore, and didn't say anything until they were already sitting down. "I told you I don't wanna join your super-secret boy band."

For a moment, he imagined himself sitting behind a drum set with Pepper and Peter at different instruments, and it disturbed him deeply. "No, no, no. See, I remember, you do everything yourself. How's that working out for you?" The man replied, and Tony figured out that Fury knew he was dying now. Natasha had to have told him. 

"It's. . . It's. . . It's. . . I'm sorry. I don't wanna get off on the wrong foot. Do I look at the patch or the eye? Honestly I'm a bit sleep deprived, I'm having. . ." Avoidance was his friend.

"I am very real. I'm the realest person you're ever gonna meet," Fury replied, raising his brow. That did not make sense at all to the billionaire.

"Just my luck. Where's the staff here?" Tony shot back, really wondering, because when he'd bought the donuts he was eating on the roof, there were at least two people in there. 

Fury looked to the black lines peeking out of the collar of his shirt. "That's not looking so good," he commented casually, getting right to the point. 

"Did you come here to make fun of me? Cause if so. . ."

Tony trailed off as he saw Natasha walking toward them, not dressed in her Natalie Rushman guise. "We've secured the perimeter but I don't think we should hold it for too much longer."

"You're fired," he said immediately, stifling a smile. 

"That's not up to you," the spy responded, the corner of her lips quirking up in a smirk. 

"Tony, I want you to meet Agent Romanoff," Fury said, a smug undertone to his voice. He didn't know that he already knew who she was then. 

"Oh yeah, old news, pirate. How's it going, Natashalie? Is this part of your evil plan?"

Tony absolutely beamed inside at seeing the surprise that flashed on Fury's face. "Something like that," she replied, sitting down next to Fury and crossing her arms over her chest. 

"You've been very busy," Fury started, brushing past Natasha's arrival. "You made your girl your CEO, you're giving away all your stuff. You let your friend fly away with your suit. Now, if I didn't know better. . ."

"You do know better. Natasha's told you," Tony said flatly, raising a brow. 

"First name basis? You all cozy with my agent now?"

"Yeah, we've gotten close while she's been spying on me. We've been canoodling and stuff."

He thought he heard the redhead snort softly. Fury squinted at him for a second, making Tony squirm under the scrutinizing gaze. "What do you want from me?" The billionaire demanded. 

"What do we want from you? What do you want from me?" Tony didn't miss Romanoff stalking off. "You have become a problem, a problem I have to deal with. Contrary to your belief, you are not the centre of my universe. I have bigger problems than you in the southwest region to deal with."

"Nobody asked you to butt in," Tony snapped as Natasha returned, but Fury ignored him. 

"Hit him."

Natasha was holding a needle, and Tony reared back in distrust. Despite her boss's words, she simply held it up with a questioning raise of her brows. "What is that?"

"It'll help," she said simply, and he could see nothing but truth on her face. Finally, he nodded, wincing as she injected it into his neck.

"What did you just do to me?" He asked, feeling immediately better. The nausea, headache, and deep pain he had been feeling constantly faded immeasurably.

"What did we just do to you?" Fury repeated like a child, "That's lithium dioxide, it's gonna take the edge off. We're trying to get you back to work."

He wanted to ask for more of it, but knew it wouldn't save him. "Get to work on what? I've tried everything."

"Doesn't look like it's gonna be an easy fix."

"I know. I've looked for a replacement for the palladium, I've tried every combination, every test there is," Tony insisted. 

"Well, I'm here to tell you, you haven't tried them all."

* * *

Peter was starting to memorize the specs of dust in Pepper's office. He'd been there so often lately that it was almost as familiar as home, and he was entertaining himself by drawing invisible patterns on her desk with his finger. When he woke up that morning, JARVIS told them that Tony had left and would be back sometime that day, and Pepper had sighed because he hadn't even asked if she was available to watch him. 

Regardless, Pepper would always put Peter first. She was basically a parent to him. The boy jolted at his own thoughts, looking up at the woman, who had a phone to her ear, and he was about to say something when the door opened, and he craned his neck to see Pepper's PA (who'd signed so many NDAs she basically couldn't even say the word Stark without getting thrown in jail) and his Dad. 

"Daddy!"

"He refuses to-"

"Leave. I'm not leaving yet, just give me a minute," Tony continued for her, and the PA gave up. Peter felt a little bad for her. 

Pepper continued with her phone call. "Well, then, tell the President to sign an order. We’ll talk about it at the Expo," she shifted, briefly netting Tony's eyes, "Will Tony Stark be there?"

"Will I?" He asked, pulling up the chair next to his son's, pressing a quick kiss to his forehead and brushing his hair out of his face. 

"No he will not. Bye." She hung up. 

"Harsh," Peter commented, then turned to his dad again, "where were you?"

"Getting donuts. Hanging with a pirate."

The nine year old blinked owlishly, trying to figure out if that was code for something. He prided himself on being able to understand his dad's weird metaphors, but this one flew over his head. 

"Got a minute, Pep?"

"No. I'm taking care of your company and your son," she replied, her voice icy, and Peter winced. They argued a lot because, well, it was Tony Stark and Pepper Potts. He knew they loved each other, though. 

He paused to think about if they'd ever told each other, and realized they hadn't. He'd fix that. 

"Come on, you just got off the phone, and I'm here. Give me thirty seconds."

She raised a brow. "Twenty-nine, twenty-eight."

"I'm dying."

Peter choked on his breath, terror squeezing around his lungs so suddenly it hurt. " _What_?"

Pepper looked like he assumed he looked, her face frozen in fear and confusion. "Tony, what?" She rasped, blinking. 

"I'm dying. I've been dying for months. Palladium poisoning from the arc reactor," the older Stark said, trying to say it casually as if it didn't matter, but Peter could hear his voice shaking. 

Oh God, how had he not realized? He knew there was palladium in it, he knew it was poisonous, how hadn't he put it together? "B-But you can replace it, right? With another element? Or-Or a mix of elements?"

Tony swallowed, meeting his kid's eyes and not saying a word. Peter's heart sunk. "You're dying? You've been dying?"

Tears were welling in Peter's eyes, and his face crumpled in an instant. It felt like Afghanistan all over again, but so much worse. He'd always had the hope that Dad would come home, but now he was being told that with all certainty, he was going to die. 

"Da-Daddy," Peter gasped, suddenly not able to breathe. 

"Oh my God, the race. The- Your birthday! The suit you gave to Rhodey! Making me CEO! Tony!" Pepper cried, tears welling in her eyes as she stood so abruptly her chair fell over. Peter flinched, reaching for his dad as a sob left him. 

Immediately, Tony gathered the boy in his arms, shushing him and rubbing his back. "Dad, Dad, Dad," he cried, muffled into his shirt. 

"Oh my God," Pepper whispered one more time, before she was rushing over to join the hug, tangling her hand in Tony's hair and pulling him against her chest, Peter squished between them.

Natasha chose that moment to come in. "Miss Potts? Oh," the redhead stopped, looking between them, clearly unsure of what to do. Or, pretending to be unsure of what to do.

"Also, Natalie is actually Natasha, a SHIELD agent."

" _What_?"

"Tony," Natasha said disapprovingly as Happy came in. 

"What the _fuck_ , Tony?" Pepper breathed, her voice shaky, tears in her eyes. 

And then Tony saw the model leaning against the wall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we love consent before injecting mysterious chemicals in people in this household<3


End file.
